Every breath I take feels like it’ll fill me with enough air to last a day. The grass under my feet seems to lock in with the soles of my sneakers.
We thank the bus driver and walk down the steps, the pig following behind us.
I feel triumphant, like we’ve just landed on a whole new planet. We grab our suitcases from the front of the bus and inhale the fresh pine-y air. “Leave some excitement for the rest of us, okay?” “Oh my god! We’re here! We’re finally back! Waddles!” -she shakes the pig- “This is your hometown! Are you excited to see everyone again? Because I’m so excited to see Candy and Grenda, my best friends in the whole world-“ The bus creaks to a stop and Mabel springs out of her seat.Īfter all this time, she’s still a millimeter taller than me. I’ve been yearning for this moment for so long, I spent my entire eighth grade year counting down the days until I could return to the town that changed my life forever. After an entire year, we’ve finally made it back.Īs our bus turns a familiar corner I have to stop myself from shooting out of my seat. My heart swells and my foot starts tapping. We pass the water tower with the small town’s name on it. She’s staring out the window on the opposite side of the bus, her hand absentmindedly stroking Waddles, who’s lying in the aisle. It’s impossible to tell when one tree ends and the next begins. Sometimes I like to stare at one point out the window and unfocus my eyes so they don’t move with the trees. I look up, breathe in the musty, ammonia-tinged bus air, and watch the green blur of the pine trees zoom by.
The entire middle is taped together because of that time my clumsy ass tripped over the paper and ripped it clean in half. The left side is slightly tattered from being inside a pig’s mouth. There’s a coffee stain in the top right corner seeping into Gideon’s signature. I fold and unfold the little piece of paper that has followed me around the past year.